Murderous ‘Mad Yank’ Poker Player Found Sane By Thai Doctors

The poker player known on the circuit as Ron ‘Mad Yank’ Fanelli has now been cleared to face a murder trial after Thai psychiatrists assessed him to be sane.
Ron Fanelli, 37, was arrested back in July 2010, when he confessed to stabbing Thai bar hostess Wanpen Pianchai and then stuffing her body into a travel bag before dumping it by a remote Phuket roadside.
However, in an ironic twist the poker player with the nickname ‘Mad Yank’ had legal proceedings against him interrupted until he underwent psychiatric evaluation. Apparently, the possibility that Fanelli might actually have gone mad had to be taken seriously after his behaviour became increasingly erratic, although skeptics were more inclined to believe  he was simply playing the ‘insanity card.’
Nonetheless, after five months of tests Fanelli has now been  assessed sane by psychiatrists at Suan Saranrom Hospital in Surat Thani and is free to face trial in a Thai court.
Fanelli was known as a noisy, opinionated, right-wing, ex-US navy officer who was given his poker nickname ‘Mad Yank’ on account of his volatile temperament.
Fanelli enjoyed a hot streak playing poker in London back in 2004. His biggest scores at the time included 2nd place at the £500 Gutshot Poker Festival Main Event for $19,314, and victory at the £100 Harbour Lights Poker Festival for $15,720.
However, his poker success was fleeting and according to poker player and columnist Victoria Coren, when Fanelli’s luck finally ran out his ego was severely dented. When Coren once asked Fanelli what was the worst thing he’d ever ever done, he famously replied:
“Me? I’m an angel. I’ve never done anything bad. Well, I guess I’ve made a few people cry. I don’t like getting unlucky. There was that time I told everyone at the table I hoped they’d die of cancer. Other than that, I’ve never done anything bad.”
After moving to Thailand, he apparently used prostitutes and suffered a string of unsuccessful relationships. Eventually, he must have snapped and later confessed to the police that the young, ladies murder was “a horrible, horrible accident.”
Ron ‘Mad Yank’ Fanelli now faces the prospect of a lifetime spent locked up in a hot, cramped Thai prison.